Alabama Shakes say bands should aim to be ‘sincere’ rather than ‘original’

Alabama Shakes have given their views on where new bands are going wrong in their approach to songwriting.

Speaking exclusively in this week’s issue of NME, which is on UK newsstands and available digitally now, the band’s singer Brittany Howard has said that she and her bandmates have focused on sincerity, rather than trying to be “original” or “different”.

Asked about her views on songwriting, Howard said: “A lot of people are like, ‘I want to be different, I want to be original, I want to be an electronic band that mixes this and this’, instead of just writing songs together as people and being sincere about it.”

Howard also spoke about her disbelief at the band’s success, adding: “I don’t really know what’s going on. I don’t know if it has sunk in yet. My greatest pride is to have the album out. It’s completely remarkable because this all started in an extra bedroom in my house.”

To read the rest of the interview with Alabama Shakes in which they discuss their formation and the inspiration behind their debut album ‘Boys & Girls’, pick up this week’s issue of NME, which is on UK newsstands and available digitally now